A far-right writer and activist shot himself dead in front of the altar of Paris's famed Notre Dame Cathedral on Tuesday, leaving statements denouncing gay marriage and immigration.
Two teens in eastern China committed suicide after "failing to complete homework assignments" state-run media said on Friday, in an extreme case highlighting the immense pressure schoolchildren can face.
Suicide rates are rising dramatically among middle-aged Americans, according to US government statistics, which showed a 28 percent spike from a decade ago in the number of people taking their own lives.
The main accused in the fatal gang-rape of a student on a bus in New Delhi last December hanged himself in jail Monday while in solitary confinement, prompting outrage from the victim's family.
Angry activists poured scorn on prosecutors Sunday for leading an overzealous campaign against Internet freedom fighter Aaron Swartz, with his family suggesting it contributed to his suicide.
Russia said on Monday it would be "political suicide" for the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad if it used chemical weapons against the armed opposition.
The US military held WikiLeaks suspect Bradley Manning under strict "suicide watch" partly because his gender identity struggle showed he was mentally "not stable," a witness said Sunday.
Hundreds of people demonstrated in Madrid on Friday after a woman due to be evicted killed herself in northern Spain, the second such suicide in two weeks, which the protesters blame on predatory mortgage lenders.
Suicides among US Army soldiers more than doubled in July compared to June, the Pentagon said Thursday, the latest evidence of a worrisome trend that has vexed military leaders.